Durga Puja Visarjan at Manali

As I publish this post, the last of the 4 post Durga Puja special series, almost all the idols across hundreds of pandals in Kolkata have already undergone visarjan(idol immersion) – initiating the Devi’s journey back to her in-laws.

Last year(2014) although I missed the Puja at Kolkata, I got to experience it in the serene and captivating landscapes of Manali – a hill station nestled in the mountains of Himachal Pradesh (India).

This post is from our last day of stay in Manali, which incidentally happened to be Bijaya Dasahmi/Dusshera.

(note: the Dusshera celebrations at Kullu – around 40 kms from Manali, is world famous and attracts a huge crowd from around the globe)

I feel privileged and happy to be able to bring to you pictures and videos from Durga Puja Visarjan at Manali , a one of a kind experience.

An early morning visit to the Puja Pandal revealed that preparations had already started.

Walking down the famous Manali Mall, hundreds of people drenched in colors and dancing to the tunes of traditional musical instruments like the Dammama( a type of drum), Karnal (straight brass trumpet) and Ranasingha (curved brass trumpet), the scenario is pretty different from that of a typical Kolkata Visarjan, but the feeling is awesome !!!

Don’t miss the video at the end.

Unlike a Visarjan in the plain lands of Kolkata, the hills has it’s own set of challenges as you will see in the pictures below.

From walking down hundreds of steep hilly stairs to crossing a stone wall and then navigating through the rocky boulders to access the fast flowing river every step has to be carefully executed.

With a heavy heart and hope for the same joy and celebration in the coming year people look on, as one by one all of the members of the family are set on their journey to the Divine Lands.